Midland International F.C.
Midland International Football Club is a professional football club based in Fort Molyneux, St. Gregory. The team plays in League A, the top tier of the St. Gregory Football Association, after being promoted from League B at the end of the 2015-16 season. History In 1986, second-generation Gregorian brothers James and Daniel Sullivan established Molyneux International F.C. as a competing club to local amateur champions, Fort Molyneux Chargers (now defunct). Molyneux International chose blue and black, similar to Inter Milan, as their colors. Following Coventry City's win in the 1987 FA Cup Final, the Sullivan brothers – both Coventry fans – renamed their club Midland International F.C., after the West Midlands region where both they and their English club were from. They also changed the club colors to sky blue, white and dark blue, the same colors as Coventry City. In January 1988, with Midland International leading the local amateur league (including having beaten Chargers twice), the Sullivans submitted a bid to the St. Gregory Football Association to be admitted as a professional club. The bid was accepted and Midland joined the SGFA in 1988, entering League B for the 1988-89 season. They finished as League B runners-up in 1992-93, earning promotion to League A for the first time. Midland finished the 1997-98 League A season in seventh place, but in the 1997-98 SGFA Cup they upset eventual league champions Bonneville United en route to a berth in the 1998 SGFA Cup Final against Forest United. Midland were considered only slight underdogs as Forest had finished just two places ahead of them on the League A table. However, Forest would go on to defeat Midland 3-1 in the Final. The following season would be Midland's most successful. They finished as runners-up in League A behind FC Chapman while Forest, the team who had denied them a Cup title the previous season, slipped to 7th. Midland were unable to return to the Cup Final, however, being eliminated in the quarter-finals by Bonneville United. Finishing second in the league earned Midland a spot in the 1999 SGFA Shield as FC Chapman went on to win the league and cup double. Chapman defeated Midland 1-0 in the Shield match, keeping the Stallions without a trophy once more. Midland reached the 2010 SGFA Cup Final, their second appearance in the final and first in 12 years. After a weather delay that forced the match to be postponed by 24 hours, Midland finally defeated Starrs County 2-0 to claim the first trophy in club history. They qualified for the 2010 SGFA Shield in the process, but for the second time were defeated in the Shield by FC Chapman. The club finished the 2014-15 season in 14th place in League A, meaning they would have to face off against the winner of the League B play-offs to retain their league position. They were defeated 4-3 in a penalty shootout by Port St. Christopher Pirates after the match had finished 1-1, resulting in Midland being relegated from any league for the first time in their history. Stadium The team plays its home games at QuickCash Stadium, where they have played since it opened in 1997. Prior to that, the team played at the much smaller Balk Park, which is still used by the Midland Reserves and Academy teams. Colors, crest and nickname 'Kits' Midland's uniforms are currently supplied by Puma, who replaced adidas after that company's contract expired in 2014. The shirt sponsor is QuickCash, who also hold naming rights to the team's home ground. As part of their 30th anniversary celebrations, the club unveiled a new third blue and black kit in 2016, meant to resemble their original Inter Milan-themed kits when they were known as Molyneux International. As well as featuring as a clash kit in some away games, the anniversary kits will also be worn in select home matches during 2016-17. Support Rivalries :See also: Forest United F.C.-Midland International F.C. rivalry Midland consider their chief rivals to be Forest United. The two clubs entered the SGFA in consecutive years (Forest in 1987, Midland in 1988) and came up through the league at roughly the same time. The two sides contested the 1998 SGFA Cup Final, which Forest won. Midland's other closest geographical rivalry is with Rivergate. Players 'Current squad' : As of January 10, 2017 Note: Players without a flag are from St. Gregory. Players with an asterisk (*) are from outside the United States or its territories, or have represented a non-U.S. territory at international level, but hold either citizenship or permanent residency in the U.S. and thus do not count towards the league cap on foreign players. Out on loan 'Reserves and Academy' :Further information: Midland International F.C. Reserves and Academy Former players :Further information: Category:Midland International F.C. players Honors * SGFA Cup: 1 :2009-10 Category:Club pages Category:Midland International F.C.